Sword Skills (Spell Blade Online)
| }} are «Sword Art Online»'s combat movements that are assisted by the system. Most Sword Skills are named in English, with exceptions being Katana and certain Martial Arts-category skills, which are named in Japanese but written in the English alphabet. Sword Skills were included in the Closed Beta of «Spell Blade Online». With the official release, several minor modifications were added. One of these changes was the addition of six elemental damage properties: , , , , , and , which supplement the usual physical damage. Another change allowed players to create their own sword skills. Sword Skills also exist within the world of «Aunkai» of «Project Alicization» but the residents living there know them as or just simply, . From an outside view, they are the combat movements that are assisted by the system, however, all residents believe that secret maneuvers are abilities granted to them by their gods. Mechanics In Sword Art Online/Spell Blade Online Within Sword Art Online and Spell Blade Online, Sword Skills are activated when a player performs the appropriate | }}, literally preparation motion, for a skill, such as raising a sword atop one's shoulder. As soon as the system recognizes the motion, the player's weapon begins to glow in a color specific to a Sword Skill. The player can then allow the system to take over and automatically complete the skill at a speed that is normally near impossible for a player to achieve and dealing much more damage than a regular sword swing. . After a skill is completed, the user is temporarily rendered rigid in a state called a | }}, literally post-technique stiffening, during which the user is made vulnerable to any counter-attacks. The higher the level of the Sword Skill used, the longer the «Post-Motion» period is. After a Sword Skill has been used, the skill enters a | }} period, which is displayed as a cooling icon at the bottom of the player's view. Until this period ends, the same Sword Skill cannot be used, however, any other learned skills that are not in a cooling period can still be used. The number of available Sword Skills and their type depends on the Weapon Skills that the player has trained. In Project Alicization Within Project Alicization, Secret Maneuvers are hidden techniques of certain families. Instead of being separated by weapon, like in SAO and SBO, Secret Maneuvers are divided by the sword style it is used in. Most Secret Maneuvers are, in fact, carbon copies of original SAO Sword Skills. However, this doesn't hold absolutely true as there are some original Sword Skills invented by residents of Aunkai that have little to no basis in Sword Skills from SAO. A new mechanic invoked in the world of Aunkai that completely sets it apart from Sword Skills in SAO is that the number of hits in a certain Secret Maneuver is limited to the user's «Object Control Authority» and the level of «Priority» the weapon in which the Secret Maneuver is used with. Higher authorities and higher priorities allow for the usage of Secret Maneuvers with higher hit counts. Known Sword Skills One-Handed Sword Righteous Cross (Unique Skill) After a player obtains the Sacred Cross Unique Skill, they will gain access to several more one-handed sword skills that will be exclusive to them. All sword skills obtained from the Sacred Cross Unique Skill Skill has a magical damage property of 40% physical, 60% holy (with the sole exception of «Howling Octave» which has a magical damage property of 40% physical, 40% holy, and 20% fire). One-Handed Curved Sword One-Handed Mace Two-Handed Battle Axe Two-Handed Sword Two-Handed Spear Rapier Dagger Katana (Extra Skill) Battōjutsu (Unique Skill) Soaring Slash (Unique Skill) Niten Ichi-ryū (Unique Skill) Dual Blades (Unique Skill) Known Sword Skills in Project Alicization Floating Castle Style (Aincrad-style) is a style separately "invented" by Emilia Rosenberg (Ayanami) and Lucas Winstanley (Kazuto) (due to Ayanami diving first and Kazuto only joining later when he heard of her condition) using their combat experience from SAO and consisting of multi-hit one-handed sword techniques. Despite having comparably less strength than two-handed sword techniques, the style compensates for this by using momentum to increase the force of one's strikes. When countering an opponent's sword, Floating Castle Style users employ a multi-hit Skill or «Skill Connect» to block it and deliver a decisive blow on the last hit. Floating Castle Style also includes Martial Arts Skills using one's free hand, although this application is unique to Lucas. Note: All moves of this class are named after the «Sword Skills» in SAO and all skills available in SAO are also part of this style. Farrington-style The swordsmanship style of the Farrington Family, the family of knights serving under the Rosenberg Crown, focuses on the "beauty of a single strike", using two-handed sword techniques to overpower opponents through brute force. The style also unconsciously makes use of Incarnation, using one's pride as a knight to boost the strength of their sword. *«Banishment» (SAO «Radiant Arc)» Ambrose-style The swordsmanship style of the Ambrose Family, the royal house of the Maventium Kingdom, it focuses on the "beauty of a single strike" and seems to primarily make use of one-handed sword techniques to overpower one's opponent through brute force. The style also unconsciously makes use of Incarnation, using one's pride to boost the strength of their sword. *«Azure Wind Slash» (SAO «Slant») Notes References Category:Terminology (Alternative Spell Blade Online) Category:Universe and Terminology (Alternative Spell Blade Online) Category:Game Mechanics (Alternative Spell Blade Online) Category:Sword Skills (Alternative Spell Blade Online)